The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of geranium plant, botanically known as Pelargonium zonale, and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99.
xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99 is a product of a planned breeding program which had the objective of creating new geranium varieties with orange to intense salmon flower color in combination with dark-green foliage.
xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99 originated from a hybridization made by the inventor, Angelika Utecht, in a controlled breeding program in Galdar, Gran Canaria, Spain, in 1992. The female parent was a hybrid seedling, designated no. 1020-6 (unpatented), having salmon-pink, semi-double flowers, dark-green foliage with very weak zonation, and compact plant habit. The male parent was the commercial variety xe2x80x98Najdaxe2x80x99 (unpatented), which is characterized by orange flower color, early flowering response, medium-green foliage with strong zonation, and relatively compact plant habit.
xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99 was selected as one flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross by the inventor, Angelika Utecht, in 1993 in a controlled environment in Galdar, Gran Canaria, Spain.
The first act of asexual reproduction of xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99 was accomplished when vegetative cuttings were taken from the initial selection in the fall of 1993 in a controlled environment in Galdar, Gran Canaria, Spain, by, or under the supervision of, Angelika Utecht. Horticultural examinations of plants grown from cuttings of the plant, initiated in May 1995 in Hillscheid, Germany, and continuing thereafter, has demonstrated that the combination of characteristics as herein disclosed for xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99 are firmly fixed and are retained through successive generations of asexual reproduction.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be basic characteristics of xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99, which in combination distinguish this geranium as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. semi-double, orange flowers;
2. large inflorescences borne well-above the foliage;
3. dark-green foliage with distinct zonation;
4. medium to strong growth, and a rather wide, but not very tall (high) foliage canopy; and
5. early to medium spring flowering response.
xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99 has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype of the new cultivar may vary significantly with variations in environment such as temperature, light intensity and day length without any change in the genotype. The following observations, measurements, and comparisons describe plants grown in Hillscheid, Germany, and in Langley, British Columbia, Canada, under greenhouse conditions which approximate those generally used in commercial practice.
Of the many commercial cultivars known to the present inventor, the most similar in comparison to xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99 are the parental variety xe2x80x98Nadjaxe2x80x99 and the varieties xe2x80x98Fischampionxe2x80x99 (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,400), xe2x80x98Fismegaxe2x80x99 (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,773), and xe2x80x98Fisglorixe2x80x99 (U.S. Plant patent application Ser. No. 09/323,150, abandoned). In comparison to xe2x80x98Fischampionxe2x80x99, xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99 has a lighter-orange tone of flower color and larger inflorescences on stronger, usually green-colored peduncles, while xe2x80x98Fischampionxe2x80x99 has thin and partly dark-red peduncles.
In contrast to xe2x80x98Fismegaxe2x80x99, which has single-type flowers, xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99 has semi-double flowers of a slightly different color and a somewhat stronger zonation of leaves. Furthermore, the peduncles of xe2x80x98Fismegaxe2x80x99 have a distinctly stronger, reddish coloration than the peduncles of xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99.
In comparison to xe2x80x98Fisglorixe2x80x99, xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99 has a lighter-orange, instead of orange-red, flower color and dark-green foliage with stronger zonation, while xe2x80x98Fisglorixe2x80x99 has medium-green leaves with weak zonation. Furthermore, the plant habit of xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99 is normally wider than the more round plants of xe2x80x98Fisglorixe2x80x99.
In comparison to xe2x80x98Nadjaxe2x80x99, which has medium-green foliage, xe2x80x98Fisrocky Orangexe2x80x99 has dark-green leaves with narrower and weaker zonation, larger inflorescences, and more vigorous growth.